If you like photographing your kids, it can be both rewarding and profitable. Taking pictures of your kids is no easy task and if it’s something you don’t love doing, the child (or your kids) you are photographing will know, making it that much more difficult to get the shot you want.

Some of the most common techniques used in photography will not necessarily work when taking pictures of your kids. Telling a child to “freeze or “hold it will not make much sense to them. Children will often do as they please so it is the job of the photographer to anticipate what a child is about to do and be ready to capture it.

YOU can turn this into your advantage: Since your kids don’t always do what you want them to do, or what you expect them to do (actually they rarely do!). A solution often is: don’t expect them to become a cooperative little adult merely because you want to take their picture. Trick them – expect them to act like your kids. Don’t expect anything in particular. DO this and you can enter the fun and profitable field of child photography.

Know your stuff – Before you start booking sessions with your kids you must know exactly what you are capable of doing – what your camera is capable of doing – what all your equipment is capable of doing. Operating your camera and equipment must be second nature. Have your style of photography down pat, so when you start a session your mind is on the your kids). This takes your complete focus. This is not the time to be fiddling with you camera, or trying to figure out your light setup. Children take 100% of your concentration. For some your kids the entire shoot may only last 10 minutes – though you feel you have just run a marathon – so you have to be able to get in position , get the most cooperation from the child, get great shots. At times, this has to be done very quickly, BUT you cannot make the child feel they are being rushed.

When photographing your kids, expect anything and everything to happen. If you have a better understanding of the various behaviours of your kids at certain ages, it will go a long way to being able to capture the images you want thus increasing your financial gain. In addition, knowing what you can expect from a child at age two versus one at age five, will help in keeping your clients satisfied.

During a session photographing your kids you can get a variety of poses, expressions and antics. In no other field of photography are you liable to get such variety. The more you learn about little ones the better child photographer you will be. Children are not just your kids until they become adults -they come in all sizes. Between four months and four years you can place them into quite a few categories: 4-6 mos, 6-12 mos, 12-18 mos, 18-24 mos, and then you can lengthen out the age span. Awareness of these ages are needed to help you – the photographer – be aware of the limitations your kids (especially little ones) have.

Keep in mind that parents can play a key role when photographing your kids. They will be able to tell you certain things about their child that can go a long way to helping you through the picture session ultimately ensuring you obtain the best possible shots. Given most your kids have difficulty sitting through a photography session, you will not have time to win them over; knowing their likes and dislikes, their fears, their favorite things, to name a few, can be extremely helpful.

Above all else, get your camera ready to go – second chances to capture an impromptu moment don’t come around very often (if at all) when photographing your kids.

In most areas of photography a tripod is great for sharp photos. However with child photography you do not always have such a luxury. Once they reach the moving around stage, a tripod limits your ability to capture expressions and poses. Be mindful of your camera settings – keep that shutter speed fast enough to prevent blurring – and be ready to move quickly!

There is no limit to what you can capture in a shot when photographing your kids; it can be anything from climbing on or out of something, to taking their shoes and socks off. The more experience you gain photographing your kids, the more you will know what works for different age groups.

There is no question that photographing your kids is a challenge. And just when you might start to feel comfortable doing it, along comes a new challenge – multiple subjects. Dealing with twins, triplets, etc. will really test your skills as child photographer! But don’t worry, this is part of the job and over time you will learn tricks to keeping all your subjects engaged.

When capturing a child or your kids on film, get creative when trying to get their attention; use different techniques and use them quickly as you won’t have the time to try again. Using a digital camera can help in this regard as there are no limits to the amount of exposures you can take and luckily, you can look at the pictures very quickly as you go.

Brothers and sisters can also play a vital role in your photography session with your kids. Siblings may actually be more successful than parents in getting their brother or sister to laugh, cry, smile, or make a funny face. Use the comfort level a child feels with their sibling to your best advantage and get the pictures you want. Another bonus to having sibling present, is that the parents may decide that they too should be photographed- all this means a bigger photo package for the client and more money for you!

Take your act on the road – You can do child photography at the park – on the beach – in the backyard, just as easily as in a studio or home – maybe more so – and nature will take care of the lighting for you, as long as you select open shade.

Items to have on hand: Depending on the ages and whether you are shooting indoors or outdoors you need a supply of items to catch and keep their interest and that look great in a photo: rattles feather dusters soft toys dolls hats mirrors a telephone (the bigger the better) a big whistle duplicate toys (for twins & overly competitive little ones) treats & snacks.

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Dan Feildman -
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